Field of the Invention and Description of the Prior Art
This invention relates to a method of high speed mass transportation, specifically a design for a track and the bottom supportive structure of a vehicle, so they combine to reduce the friction which impedes a vehicles forward progress, and they further combine to provide support and direction to the vehicle.
Since the passenger carrying capacity of air travel is limited by subsonic speeds and saturated air corridors, and since the only forms of ground transportation are wheeled, with all its limitations, such as a maximum speed of about 200 m.p.h. for trains, many of the major countries of the world are looking for and developing alternatives to the wheel for high speed mass transportation.
Two of the most promising types of wheelless ground transportation so far devised are electromagnetic flight and the tracked air cushion vehicle.
The tracked air cushion vehicle seems to have a very limited potential since it requires an expensive, concrete, U shaped track, and the vehicle also disrupts the immediate area of its passing with turbulant air, thus increasing the required width of the right of way.
The main disadvantage of electromagnetic flight is that the involved technology is relatively new, so the problems which can be expected to crop up will very possibly increase the cost of development and construction greatly.